Sermon -- 6th Sunday in Lent: Palm Sunday (March 29, 2026)

YOUR KING COMES WITH AN ATTITUDE.

PHILIPPIANS 2:5-11 

In the name + of Jesus.

      St. Paul wrote to the Philippians, “Indeed, let this attitude be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus” (Philippians 2:5).  This tells you that Jesus has an attitude.  Now, usually when we say that someone has an attitude, we regard that as a problem.  You might say to a child, “You have a bad attitude.  Clean it up!”

     We experience bad attitudes because people don’t like to be told what to do.  This is also a reason that Americans are opposed to having a king.  If we don’t like our leaders, we can vote them out.  But kings reign for life.  Kings don’t ask permission to make decrees.  King issue laws, and that word reigns supreme.  (If you enjoy irony, this Sunday hits the same weekend as a bunch of “No Kings” rallies.) 

     Our Lord is the true King who reigns supreme.  The Lord God is King of heaven and earth.  His word reigns supreme.  He has given his laws to define good and evil, and he did not ask for our opinion on those laws.  Sinners, of course, resist this.  Everyone has one throne in his heart.  Each person wants to rule on it himself.  “I want to do what I want to do when I want to do it.  And I don’t want anyone to challenge, much less condemn, what I choose to do!”  But God is eternal; his word is not going to change.  And there is going to be no regime change.  So, anyone who thinks he can challenge, criticize, or condemn God for his laws will finally discover that our Lord comes with an attitude—vengeance upon all who do not honor him as King.

     The prophet Zechariah foretold that the King is coming.  The King comes with an attitude.  But Jesus’ attitude is not something we should fear.  Zechariah prophesied, “Rejoice greatly, Daughter of Zion!  Shout, Daughter of Jerusalem!  Look!  Your King is coming to you.  He is righteous and brings salvation.  He is humble and is riding on a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a donkey” (Zechariah 9:9).  Your King comes with an attitude, but it is an attitude of meekness, gentleness, and humility.

      St. Paul noted, “Though he was by nature God, he did not consider equality with God as a prize to be displayed, but he emptied himself by taking the nature of a servant” (Philippians 2:6).  Jesus did not come radiating his divinity.  Jesus did not lose his power, glory, or majesty.  Rather, he kept it hidden under weak, humble flesh.  So, when Jesus entered Jerusalem on Palm Sunday, people did not flee from him in terror.  Rather, they met him with songs of praise.  “The crowds who went in front of him and those who followed kept shouting, Hosanna to the Son of David!  Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord!  Hosanna in the highest” (Matthew 21:9)!  They welcomed Jesus as their king.  They recognized that he had not come as an enemy or even as a threat.  He came as a king, but not as a tyrant. 

     Your King comes with an attitude.  He assures you, “I am gentle and humble in heart” (Matthew 11:29), so you need not fear him.  But do not misinterpret Jesus’ gentleness as timidity.  And even though Jesus was humble, that does not mean he was a push-over.  Jesus stood firm on God’s word.  He preached that word boldly and without apology.  Occasionally, those words cut people to the heart.  Some were alarmed by their sins and the judgment which they deserved.  To those who feared God’s wrath and sought relief from their guilt, Jesus proved to be gentle and humble in heart.  He bestowed mercy and gave them hope.  Others became angry at Jesus’ preaching.  They refused to let King Jesus possess the throne in their heart.  But when they became angry, Jesus did not soften God’s message.  He upheld the truth and did not budge.  If God’s word produced anger, the fault was not with God’s word.  Nor was the fault with the one who preached God’s word.  The fault lay with the sinner who rejected God’s word.

     Your King comes with an attitude.  His attitude was seen especially in the week when he entered Jerusalem.  Jesus was resolved to fight the battle which would deliver us from our sin.  There were numerous enemies who fought against him.  Jesus backed down from none of them.  Rabbis and priests came with cleverly devised “gotcha” questions, hoping to condemn Jesus for blasphemy or for treason.  Jesus did not evade their questions; he answered them with boldness and faithfulness to God’s word.  The devil tempted Jesus to shrink from the cup of God’s wrath.  Jesus responded with fervent prayer in the Garden of Gethsemane.  The Father strengthened Jesus in his resolve to take up our sins and to drain the cup of God’s wrath.  Even when Jesus hung in agony from the cross, his enemies taunted him.  They challenged Jesus the same way Satan had when Jesus was in the wilderness.  “Save yourself!  If you are the Son of God, come down from the cross!  If he’s the King of Israel, let him come down now from the cross, and we will believe in him” (Matthew 27:40,42, emphasis added). 

     Jesus, however, had no need to prove himself to the priests, to the rabbis, or to the devil.  St. Paul noted, “Though he was by nature God, he did not consider equality with God as a prize to be displayed, but he … humbled himself and became obedient to the point of death—even death on a cross” (Philippians 2:6-8).  He was determined to do the work that saves sinners.  His mission was not to dazzle, but to die; not to slaughter his enemies, but to be slain for sinners.  Your King comes with an attitude.

     Jesus humbled himself to suffer death on a cross, but he was no helpless victim.  He did not seek to escape arrest, although he did demonstrated that he could have.  When Judas arrived in Gethsemane to betray Jesus, Jesus asked who they were looking for.  They said, “Jesus of Nazareth.”  Jesus answered plainly, “I am he.”  St. John then adds, “When Jesus told them, ‘I am he,’ they backed away and fell to the ground” (John 19:6).  Still, he did not attempt to flee.  Your King came with an attitude—a conviction to suffer and die for sinners.

     Jesus is a King whose will was carried out, not a pawn at the mercy of his enemies.  To further emphasize that Jesus was no helpless victim, we need only to consider the plans of Jesus’ enemies.  They were trying to orchestrate Jesus’ death according to their own designs.  “The chief priests and the elders of the people assembled in the palace of the high priest, whose name was Caiaphas.  They plotted together how to arrest Jesus by stealth and kill him.  But they said, ‘Not during the Festival, or else there might be a riot among the people’” (Matthew 26:3-5).  And yet, Jesus’ death came during the Passover feast.  In truth, the priests were the pawns.  The Lord used the unbelief and the hatred of the priests and rabbis to achieve his own purpose.  According to Jesus’ timing and in fulfillment of God’s promises, they unwittingly fulfilled the role of God’s anointed priests: They sacrificed the Lamb of God.  Jesus is the true Passover Lamb whose body was roasted in God’s wrath and whose blood now marks you so that death and damnation pass over you. 

     And since he has done everything the Father sent him to do, the Father raised up his Son on the third day to live and reign forever.  This man, Jesus, now possesses all authority in heaven and on earth.  St. Paul wrote, “God … highly exalted him and gave him the name that is above every name, so that at the name of Jesus every knee will bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father” (Philippians 2:9-11). 

     Jesus of Nazareth has been exalted.  This man now has and uses all the majesty, glory, and power of God.  Behold!  Your King reigns forever and ever.  And you have every reason to rejoice over this, because this King rules for you.  Everything in heaven and on earth and under the earth serves Jesus and is employed by him for the eternal good of his Church.  You may not understand why he does what he does, but your comfort is not in unraveling how he rules.  Your comfort is in knowing that Jesus does rule, that he is your loving Redeemer, and that whatever you experience does not change his nature, his love, and his devotion to you.

     Your King still comes to you.  He comes as God’s people sing the Palm Sunday song: “Hosanna in the highest!  Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord!”  We sing this as we are preparing to feast on Holy Communion.  For Lord comes to feed us with his living body.  He comes to mark us with the blood that causes death and damnation to pass over us.  Your King still comes with an attitude—compassion, mercy, and devotion to you.

     Behold!  Your King will come again on the Last Day to judge the living and the dead.  You may be grieved that people currently mock him, his word, and his people.  They seem to get away with it because our Lord’s judgment is being held back.  But your King will come with an attitude.  He did not regard his divinity as a prize to be displayed when he came to suffer and die, but his divinity will be displayed in radiant, undeniable glory when he comes to judge the living and the dead.  St. Paul said, “Every knee will bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord” (Philippians 2:10-11).  Many will not want to, but they will have no choice.  Jesus lives and reigns over all things.

     Our joy is that we already bend our knees before him, especially as we come to this altar to feast on his body and blood.  Our joy is that we already confess that Jesus is Lord.  We engage in the hymns of God’s people from all ages.  We even join in the song of angels and archangels as we sing, “Holy, holy, holy, Lord God of heavenly hosts.  Heaven and earth are full of your glory!”  We sing that because we confess that it is our King who comes to us to bless us and to save us.

     So, “let this attitude be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus” (Philippians 2:5). You can be humble; for you know that you are sinners like everyone else on earth.  But you need not be timid.  You can confess God’s word boldly because it will never fail you or deceive you.  Even if you must suffer hatred from Jesus’ enemies, you are still sons and daughters of the King.  When he comes again with an attitude, he will avenge you.  Better than that, he will exalt you to the heights of heaven and to glory everlasting.

     Rejoice!  Your King comes with an attitude.  He is righteous and has salvation.  He is full of compassion and mercy.  He is totally committed and devoted to you.  That is why you and I are totally committed and devoted to him.  He is the King we all need.

In the name of the Father and of the Son + and of the Holy Spirit.  Amen.

YouTube -- 4th Sunday in Lent (March 15, 2026)

Here is the Divine Service from Sunday, March 15, 2026.

Sermon -- 5th Sunday in Lent (March 22, 2026)

THIS MAN HAS POWER OVER DEATH.

JOHN 11:17-27,38-45

In the name + of Jesus.

      It is almost impossible to underestimate how much went wrong back in the Garden of Eden.  Sin entered the world.  There were consequences to women, such as pain in child-bearing.  There were consequences to men.  The man’s role was to work and provide for his family.  But the Lord informed him, “Cursed is the ground because of you; through painful toil you will eat food from it all the days of your life.  It will produce thorns and thistles for you” (Genesis 3:17-18).  The earth was not merely plagued with thorns and thistles.  The ground would know earthquakes, wildfires, and pestilence.  The earth would know blizzards, hail, and tornadoes.  Bodies would experience broken bones, allergies, genetic disorders, and physical disabilities.  Sin has brought on a death march for every living thing.  To top it all off, the curse that comes with sin is eternal.

     When Jesus entered the world to be our Savior, it was not just to deliver us from hell.  The goal is not just to evade punishment.  Think of it this way.  A man steps out of a tavern, having had way too much to drink.  He gets in his car to drive home.  But he crashes through a fence, runs his car into a house, smashes into the living room, is severely injured and severely injures others.  When the man goes to trial, the case is dismissed because of some technicality.  The man goes free, breathes a sigh of relief, and says, “Thank God I am not going to jail!”  Nevertheless, the damage he did remains.  The home is still damaged.  The car is still totaled.  And everyone still faces surgery, hospital stays, physical therapy, and counselling.  Would anyone conclude there was a happy ending because the man avoided jail, fines, and a criminal record?

     In the same way, if Jesus had done nothing but deliver us from hell, we would find some relief.  We might say, “No eternal punishment.  That’s good.”  But the damage done by sin would still affect our lives.  The world is still broken.  Hearts are still corrupt.  Words are still cruel.  Bodies still suffer pain, disease, and disorders.  And death still claims us all.  It is almost impossible to underestimate how much went wrong back in the Garden of Eden.  So also, it is almost impossible to underestimate how much Jesus does as our Savior.  Jesus has come to restore all things.  This man takes away the sin of the world.  This man will deliver us from all evil.  This man has power over death.

     Jesus got word that his friend Lazarus was ill.  In the days before modern medicine, even a fever could be life-threatening.  The message was an appeal for Jesus to bring the healing he had brought to so many others.  But Jesus delayed, and Lazarus died.  In Jewish culture, they did not waste time with burial.  Lazarus was wrapped in grave clothes and placed in a cave by that evening.  Lazarus’ body was already decaying by the time Jesus had arrived at Bethany.  Nevertheless, Jesus came for Lazarus because this man has authority over death.

     Death is cruel.  When Jesus came to the grave of Lazarus, he wept.  He felt the pain death inflicts on loved ones.  That pain is bad enough, but death is more cruel than that.  It does not care what schedule or responsibilities you have.  It does not respect feelings or friendships or fame.  Lazarus had two sisters, Martha and Mary.  It seems that they were both single.  If so, then Lazarus was responsible for their care and protection.  Lazarus’ death meant their lives would become a lot harder.  For Martha and Mary, Lazarus’ death was not merely the loss of a loved one; that was bad enough.  But now they had responsibilities thrust upon them that they were not prepared for.  Anyone who has had to pick up the pieces after the loss of a loved one can appreciate this.  Death of a loved one produces not only grief, but also additional burdens.

     “When Jesus arrived, he found that Lazarus had already been in the tomb for four days. …When Martha heard that Jesus was coming, she went to meet him…  Martha said to Jesus, ‘Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died’” (John 11:17,20-21).  It does not seem that Martha was trying to lay a guilt trip on Jesus, as if to say, “Jesus, you failed us.”  Rather than an accusation, it was a confession.  “Lord, you have healed many people in Galilee and Judea.  I am sure that even with Lazarus at death’s door, you could have restored him to health.” 

     Martha’s confession continued, “‘Even now I know that whatever you ask from God, God will give you.’  Jesus said to her, ‘Your brother will rise again.’  Martha replied, ‘I know that he will rise in the resurrection on the Last Day’” (John 11:22-24).  Martha confessed what we all confess: “We look for the resurrection of the dead and the life of the world to come” (Nicene Creed).  We confess that because that is what our Lord tells us.  He has promised: “This is the will of him who sent me: that I should lose none of those he has given me, but raise them up on the Last Day.  For this is the will of my Father: that everyone who sees the Son and believes in him may have eternal life.  And I will raise him up on the Last Day” (John 6:39,40).  This man has power over death.

     Jesus gave Martha a different promise.  “Jesus said to her, ‘I am the resurrection and the life.  Whoever believes in me will live, even if he dies.  And whoever lives and believes in me will never perish’” (John 11:25-26).  Jesus said that he is the resurrection and the life.  He didn’t say someday she’ll see it.  He who is the resurrection and the life was standing right in front of her.  This man has the power to raise up Lazarus from the dead.  He not only could revive him, but he could renew him from decay and restore him to his loved ones.  He who created mankind can resurrect and re-create mankind.  This man has power over death.

     Out of compassion for those who were dear to him, “he shouted with a loud voice, ‘Lazarus, come out!’  The man who had died came out with his feet and his hands bound with strips of linen and his face wrapped with a cloth.  Jesus told them, ‘Loose him and let him go’” (John 11:43-44).  He is the resurrection and the life.  His word overrules the stench, the decay, and the finality of death.  This man has power over death.   

     Although Lazarus was restored to his sisters and was able to continue caring for them, this was a temporary fix.  Lazarus was restored to a broken world.  He returned to a crooked and corrupt population.  In fact, when Lazarus’ resurrection resulted in more people believing in Jesus, the religious leaders deemed it necessary to kill off Lazarus, too.  Lazarus returned to live as a sinner among other sinners.  This return to life was temporary.  The grave would hold him again.

     For whatever reason, people are attracted to the idea of reincarnation.  Even Christians think returning to this world in another life is appealing.  But return to what?  This would still be a world of disease and disorder, corruption and chaos, war and poverty, trials and tears.  What is so attractive about reliving these things again and again? 

     God does not create people to be recycled.  You are a unique creation of our Lord.  You were placed in this world in a particular time and place on purpose, with your own interests, abilities, and personality.  God designed you to be you for eternity. 

     If there is anything about reincarnation we would agree with, it is that all people will be judged at the end of life.  The Lord who gives us life holds us accountable for how we live it.  Our Lord created a perfect world and put holy people in it.  Man’s sin has not changed God’s expectations.  Our Lord’s judgment will not be about a reboot so that we can try again to get it right, as if sinners will ever achieve holiness.  The Lord will call us what we are, and his judgment will be final.

     Jesus came to do more than give us temporary relief from sin and death.  While we are grateful for momentary relief and for happy times, Jesus came to deliver to us eternal joys and everlasting peace.  He came to rescue us from death and a damning judgment.  In order to do that, Jesus had to address the problem that started it all—our sinfulness.

     If this man will have power over death, then this man must also have authority to forgive sins.  That authority was earned by Jesus taking sin and death into himself.  This man stood in place of mankind to suffer what mankind deserves.  The Bible testifies, “God made him, who did not know sin, to become sin for us, so that we might become the righteousness of God in him” (2 Corinthians 5:21).  Jesus became our sin and, therefore, had to suffer what sin brings—death and a damning judgment.  That is what Jesus endured on the cross.  When Jesus cried out from the cross, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” (Matthew 27:46), it is because he was absorbing the torments of hell for every sinner who has ever lived.  No matter what disgrace has stood against you, Jesus has paid the price for it.  In turn, Jesus washed you clean of every spot and stain of sin when you were baptized into his name.  Now you bear a holy status.  So, at the final judgment, Jesus will call you what you are—a saint cleansed by his innocent blood. 

     This man has power over death.  Jesus said, “Whoever believes in me will live, even if he dies” (John 11:25).  Jesus is the resurrection.  He will raise you up on the Last Day, but not to come back to a world of sorrow, suffering, and loss.  The Lord Jesus will not only raise your body to be forever flawless, he will also restore this whole creation back to the Paradise he had intended it to be.  For, if sin is taken away, so are all the evils that come from it.  Jesus will bring you a new and holy creation. 

     This man has power over death.  Jesus is the life.  Jesus already calls you what you are—a saint cleansed by his innocent blood.  Therefore, consider this marvelous promise.  Jesus said, “Whoever lives and believes in me will never perish’” (John 11:26).  If you are cleansed of sin, then death cannot have you.  Life on earth may come to an end, but life in God’s kingdom will go on without interruption and without end.  For the Christian, death is but the gate to life in heaven.  When you close your eyes in death here, you will open them to see Jesus.  You will live with angels and archangels and all the company of heaven.  You will take your place at the heavenly feast.  You will enjoy peace in a sinless existence, and death will flee away.  The man who has power over death gives you endless life.  He will restore all that went wrong because of sin, and he will make it all right.  Since it is almost impossible to underestimate what Jesus has done as our Savior, we will need eternity to rejoice in it and to sing in endless praise.  Thanks to Jesus, you will have it.

In the name of the Father and of the Son + and of the Holy Spirit.  Amen.

Sermon -- 4th Sunday of Lent March 15, 2026)

CONDUCT YOURSELVES AS CHILDREN OF LIGHT.

EPHESIANS 5:8-14

In the name + of Jesus.

     St. Paul wrote many letters to the Christian churches he served.  For the most part, there was some controversy which inspired the occasion for his letters.  They remind us that no Christian congregation is perfect.  There is a perfect church, but you have to die to enter it.  On earth, the church is filled with sinners.  The Church faces pressure to change its teachings with each generation.  It is infiltrated by false teachers and false teachings.  It usually begins by some saying that there should be room for alternative views of God’s word.  They claim that the Church should do all it can to preserve unity and peace.  “By their love you will know them,” they say.  While we pray for unity and peace, that is not the chief goal of the Church.  The chief goal is to be faithful and to hold firmly to God’s word.  No false teaching is harmless, and we cannot make peace with it.  St. Paul wrote, “All Scripture is God breathed and is useful for teaching, for rebuking, for correcting, and for training in righteousness” (2 Timothy 3:16, emphasis added).  So, when St. Paul saw that a congregation needed correction, he wrote a letter.

     Even though these Christians needed correction, St. Paul did not treat them as enemies or suggest that they were outside of the Christian Church.  He greeted them as brothers and sisters in Christ.  He thanked God for them.  He prayed for them.  And he reminded them who they were.  He wrote to the Ephesians, “For you were once darkness, but now you are light in the Lord.  Walk as children of light” (Ephesians 5:8).  

     Just as our Lord had enlightened the Ephesian Christians, so he has also enlightened you.  Many of you have lived your entire life in the light of Christ.  Having been baptized as infants and having been taught the Christian faith, you have been light in the Lord for as long as you can remember.  If you were enlightened to know God’s word later in life, you are just as much a child of God as any other Christian.  There are not degrees of being saved.  There are not levels to the kingdom of God; there is just the kingdom of God.  You are light in the Lord.  Walk as children of light.

     If you want to be particular about St. Paul’s exhortation, he tells the Ephesians Christians, “Continue to walk as children of light” (Ephesians 5:8, emphasis added).  They were already doing this.  St. Paul urged them to continue in the word they believed.  To “walk” as children of light means to conduct yourself and your whole life as children of light.  To put it succinctly, he says, “You are Christians.  Act like it!”  Conduct yourselves as children of light.

     Before we are told to act like Christians, we ought to remember what made us Christians to begin with.  St. Paul wrote, “You were once darkness” (Ephesians 5:8).  That refers to our natural sinful condition.  The sinful hearts is a dark place.  Even though the Holy Spirit has created in you a clean heart and a right spirit, it does not take much for that to be eclipsed by wickedness.  Just think of how easy it is for you to assume the worst of other people or to despise them when they infringe upon your time.

     Consider how Jesus’ disciples misread the situation with a blind beggar.  Jesus and his disciples were on their way into the temple when they saw the man who was born blind.  Being blind, he had been reduced to begging for alms.  He was a fixture at the temple gate, deposited there by friends.  He sat there, hoping that those who came to worship would be compassionate and generous to him.  Jesus’ disciples asked him, “Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind” (John 9:2)?  Since most people have sight, the disciples concluded that this must have been some special punishment that God had inflicted upon this man.  They had the idea that people who suffer are getting what they deserve. 

     We make similar judgments about other people because the sinful heart is a dark place.  This darkness is what produces not only wicked thoughts, but it also gives us our excuses for them.  Our compassion for the down-trodden is withheld because we believe they are getting what they deserve.  To be fair, that may be true.  If people blow their money on gambling, drinking, or needless Amazon purchases, they may be unable to pay their rent, their insurance, or their utilities.  We deem them unworthy of pity.  Granted, they created their own misery, but it is still misery. 

     Of course, we are responsible for much of our own misery.  People sabotage their own marriages by looking at computer generated images and fantasizing about other people.  People nurse grudges and withhold forgiveness, insisting that a rift in the family is justified and reconciliation is unreasonable.  Then there is the shame that you keep to yourself.  Even if you don’t suffer consequences for the sins of your past, you still endure the shame of them.  You crave mercy, but you fear the judgment of friends—perhaps even the abandonment by those friends if they ever found out.  If people get what they deserve, we know we deserve a damning judgment.

     The sinful heart is a dark place, but God sees and he knows.  And it will get worse.  St. Paul wrote, “Everything exposed by the light becomes visible, for it is light that makes things visible” (Ephesians 5:13).  Everything will be exposed.  Perhaps you can keep your secrets hidden and take them to the grave with you.  But in the end, everything will be revealed.  St. John was given a vision of Judgment Day.  He wrote, “Then I saw a great white throne and the one who sat on it.  The earth and the sky fled from his presence, and no place was found for them.  I also saw the dead, great and small, standing in front of the throne, and books were opened. …The sea gave up the dead that were in it, and Death and the Grave gave up the dead that were in them, and they were judged, each one according to what he had done” (Revelation 20:11-13).  At this public reckoning, everyone will be fully exposed.  God’s light will shine on each, and each dark deed and secret thought will be made known.

     How terrifying it would be for people to learn about every secret you hide!  But you don’t have to answer to other people.  You may have sinned against them, and you are accountable for that.  But it is God to whom you must give an answer.  And there is no hiding anything from him.  The Bible reminds us, “Death and Destruction lie open before the LORD—how much more human hearts” (Proverbs 15:11)! 

     The sinful heart is a dark place.  It fails to have pity on those who are held captive to their sins.  It claims the right to hold in contempt those who have made a mess of their lives.  God be praised that he does not treat us that way!  The Lord did not abandon us to our foolish errors or filthy judgments.  He continues to shine his light upon us—not just to expose our guilt, but to show us the way out. 

     Of all the people who could have looked down on us in judgment, Jesus is the one.  He kept all of God’s Commandments and did not cave into any temptations.  He could have looked on us in derision and withheld his pity.  We were too lazy to fight.  We caved in under pressure.  We know it was wrong and did it anyway.  Jesus could have insisted that we should get the judgment we deserve.  Instead, he came and suffered the judgment we deserve. 

     But the light of God’s love is seen in Jesus Christ.  God’s grace radiates from him.  In order to deliver us from the damning judgment for our sins, the Lord took away our sins.  So that we would not be banished to the outer darkness where there is weeping and gnashing of teeth, Jesus took up our sins.  He was banished by his Father as he died on a dark Friday when the sun’s light failed.  That is where the Lord took care of your sins and altered your judgment.  You have been cleared of all charges.

     The Lord applied all of this to you in your baptism.  He changed both your status and your heart when he made you children of light.  St. Paul noted that “the fruit of the light consists in all goodness, righteousness, and truth” (Ephesians 5:9).  God’s goodness has atoned for wickedness.  God’s righteousness covers over your sin.  God’s truth guides those who are saved to godly living.  In the end, God’s light will expose you for what you are—children of God purified in Jesus’ blood.  You will highlight God’s grace.  You will reflect the image and innocence of Jesus Christ.

     That is why the Lord urges you to conduct yourselves as children of light.  St. Paul urges you, “Try to learn what is pleasing to the Lord, and do not participate in fruitless deeds of darkness.  Instead, expose them” (Ephesians 5:10-11).  Continue to walk as children of light.  Continue to hear and meditate on the word of the Lord.  This will guard you from error and guide you in truth and goodness.  Many voices will try to convince you to bless what God does not bless.  The appeal for the Church to get with the times or to allow for alternative views of God’s word will always go on.  Those appeals can be crafted to sound very sensible.  Only by adhering to the word of the Lord are those appeals exposed for the lies that they are.  Only by learning what is pleasing to the Lord will you continue to conduct yourselves as children of light.

     The world will always be a dark place, but the Psalms remind us, “Your words are a lamp for my feet and a light for my path” (Psalm 119:105).  That is the light that keeps us secure and ensures that we are on the right path.  God gave his word to show us his love.  His love is surely made known in the promises, but it is also revealed in his commands.  God gave those commands to us to direct us away from sin.  Sins do not produce anything good.  The Commandments, however, direct us to lives that will be blessed.  Martin Luther reminds us: “He promises grace and every blessing to all who keep these commandments” (Luther’s Small Catechism: Conclusion to the Commandments).  If you conduct yourselves as children of light, you will spare yourself of many griefs. 

     Continue to walk as children of light.  Paul wrote, “Do not participate in fruitless deeds of darkness” (Ephesians 5:11).  He could have just as easily said, “Do not drink poison.  Do not play with fire.  Do not stick a fork in an electric outlet.”  You have been rescued from sin death, and destruction.  Do not return to them; for you are light in the Lord.  You are Christians.  Rejoice in it.  You are Christians.  Act like it.  Conduct yourselves as children of light. 

In the name of the Father and of the Son + and of the Holy Spirit.  Amen.

YouTube -- 3rd Sunday in Lent (March 8, 2026)

Here is the Divine Service from Sunday, March 8, 2026.

Sermon -- 3rd Sunday of Lent (March 8, 2026)

FAITH KNOWS, ASSENTS, AND TRUSTS.

GENESIS 12:1-8

In the name + of Jesus.

     You’ve probably seen it on a poster or some other decoration.  It especially comes out during Christmas time.  It is a simple, one-word motivational slogan: “Believe.”  It’s supposed to be uplifting, but the message fails spectacularly on one point: Believe what?  Believe the Tigers will get to the World Series?  Believe that we are done with snow for the year?  Believe that you can win a contest, make new friends, or discover a secret for weight loss that doesn’t restrict your diet?  If that one-word motivational slogan is to mean anything, there should be an answer to the question, “Believe what?”

     The Christian faith is not reduced to a vague, open-ended slogan, “Believe.”  Faith that just floats in the air is a dream or a wish.  The Christian faith rests on something solid.  In fact, faith has three components: Faith knows.  Faith asserts.  And faith trusts.

     In the case of Abraham, his move was not prompted by an itch for a better life.  “The LORD said to Abram, ‘Get out of your country and away from your relatives and from your father’s house and go to the land that I will show you.  I will make you a great nation.  I will bless you and make your name great.  You will be a blessing.  I will bless those who bless you, and I will curse anyone who dishonors you.  All of the families of the earth will be blessed in you’” (Genesis 12:1-3).  Abraham moved because of a specific word from the Lord.  Faith knows what it believes.

     So it is for you and me.  Faith rests on knowledge.  We know God’s Commandments, so we know what is good and what is evil.  Because we know them, we also know the truth about ourselves.  We are sinners.  God’s Commandments expose us.  We confess, with the Psalms, “I admit my rebellious acts.  My sin is always in front of me.  Against you, you only, have I sinned, and I have done this evil in your eyes.  So you are justified when you sentence me.  You are blameless when you judge” (Psalm 51:3,4).  God’s word exposes our iniquities so that we can know them, confess them, repent of them, and flee from them. 

     We also know the Savior whom God sent for us.  Faith knows.  The Gospels proclaim what Jesus taught, what miracles he performed, and how he suffered, died, and rose from the dead.  The words and promises of God are repeated and pondered by us week after week, year after year.  And we stand to make confession of what we know every week as well.  Faith knows what it believes.

     Faith also assents to what it knows.  That means we agree it is true.  Abraham assented to God’s command to him.  Now, how did Abraham know that he had received a word from the Lord?  What convinced him that it was true?  Our best answer comes from what Moses wrote in our reading: “The LORD appeared to Abram and said, ‘I will give this land to your descendants’” (Genesis 12:7, emphasis added).  Whenever the Lord appeared to people, there was a dread sense of awe.  The message regularly began, “Fear not,” because the presence of the Lord or one of his angels produced such fear.  It seems likely that Abraham experienced that fear so that he could attest that it was God who spoke to him.  So, Abraham did not have some strange feeling or a weird dream.  He had a specific word.  His faith was based on knowledge, and he assented to what he knew.  It was the word of God; it must be true.

     So it is with the Christian faith.  It is not enough just to know facts.  That is not faith.  Atheists know the facts about Jesus.  They know what Christians say about Christmas and Easter.  But they deny that Jesus is God.  They deny that Jesus rose from the dead.  They deny that there is a judgment or a hell.  They may know what the Bible teaches, but they do not assent.  They will not confess that the Bible is true.

     Faith assents to what it knows.  We not only know the Commandments of God, we assent that they are right.  We not only know the Bible’s claim that Jesus lived a perfect and holy life, we assent that it is true.  We not only know that Jesus died by crucifixion, was buried, and on the third day rose from the grave with a glorified body; we assent that it is true.  Our assent is not based on what we wish to be true.  You might wish that Jesus promised that you will never know sorrow or pain.  You might wish that Jesus promised you will always have lots of money and friends.  But you don’t have promises about those things.  To believe them is only a wish.  But we have evidence of Jesus’ life, death, and resurrection.  Jesus suffered under the Roman governor, Pontius Pilate.  Jesus died by crucifixion which Pontius Pilate confirmed before he handed Jesus’ body over to Joseph of Arimathea.  Jesus rose bodily from the grave, and eyewitnesses testified to it.  In fact, those eyewitnesses chose to be persecuted, imprisoned, and killed rather than renounce their message.  We even have testimony from non-Christian historians about Jesus.  The facts come with overwhelming evidence.  Faith knows these facts, and faith assents that they are true.

     But there is an important, third component to the Christian faith.  Faith trusts.  Just knowing the facts is not saving faith.  Even knowing they are true is not saving faith.  The devil knows the facts.  St. James wrote, “You believe that God is one.  Good for you!  Even the demons believe that—and shudder” (James 2:19)!  Oh, yes, the demons know Jesus!  St. Mark wrote, “Whenever the unclean spirits saw him, they fell down in front of him, crying out, ‘You are the Son of God’” (Mark 3:11)!  They knew Jesus.  They assented that Jesus is the Son of God.  But they did not believe in him. 

      So, we not only know the facts about Jesus.  We not only assent that the facts are true.  We also know why they matter.  The Lord has told us the “why.”  “God so loved the world.”  How did he demonstrate that love?  “He gave his only-begotten Son.”  Why?  So “that whoever believes in him shall not perish, but have eternal life.” (John 3:16). 

     We have specific promises from God.  So, we know and assent not only to the “what” of the Bible’s message, but we know the “why.”  The prophet Isaiah declared, “It was because of our rebellion that he was pierced.  He was crushed for the guilt our sins deserved.  The punishment that brought us peace was upon him, and by his wounds we are healed.  … The LORD has charged all our guilt to him” (Isaiah 53:5-6).  Therefore, we don’t just hope that God loves us.  We don’t just wish for forgiveness of our sins.  We don’t just dream of eternal life.  Faith knows these things.  Faith assents that they are true.  Faith trusts in them and receives the benefit of them.

     God had revealed his word to Abraham.  He extended promises to Abraham.  He worked faith in the heart of Abraham.  This means that Abraham knew God’s word, assented to God’s word, and trusted that word.  That is what moved Abraham to leave his father’s home with its idols and false worship.  Abraham, at age 75!, traveled hundreds of miles.  His destination?  “The LORD said to Abram, ‘…Go to the land that I will show you’” (Genesis 12:1).  It seems that Abraham did not even know the destination when he left.  Perhaps Abraham had never left his home before, which means that every step of this hundreds-mile-long journey was foreign to him.  Why would he go to an unknown destination and settle in a land that was utterly unfamiliar to him?  Abraham trusted the word of the Lord.  He did not know what he would face, but he trusted God who told him to go.  What’s more, God promised, “I will give this land to your descendants” (Genesis 12:7).  Abraham never saw this promise fulfilled.  It was not realized for more than four centuries after Abraham.  Nevertheless, Abraham trusted God’s promise.  Faith knows.  Faith assents.  And faith trusts. 

     You and I have been given many promises from our Lord.  And since we know God’s promises and assent that they are true, we can trust them at all times.  We can trust that our Father in heaven will hear and answer when we pray to him.  We can trust that a place in heaven awaits us when we die.  We can even trust in promises that seem to defy what we see and feel. 

     Consider this promise: “We know that all things work together for the good of those who love God, for those who are called according to his purpose” (Romans 8:28).  This promise does not say that we will know how the difficulties we suffer will work out for our good.  It does not say why we should have to endure them, or that we will like them.  Just as Abraham did not see the fulfillment that the land of Canaan would belong to his descendants, so also you may not see how God worked a tragedy out for your good in this lifetime.  But remember what God’s goal is for you—that you be delivered from a world of sorrow to the heavenly kingdom.  And if it means that you must bear a cross, then God will use that for your ultimate good to bring you to the kingdom of glory.  Faith knows the promise.  Faith assents that is true.  And faith trusts that God’s word will not fail you.

     Abraham not only received God’s promises.  Once he knew them, assented to them, and trusted in them, he began to proclaim them.  “He moved on from there to the hill country east of Bethel…  There he built an altar to the LORD and proclaimed the name of the LORD” (Genesis 12:8).  Abraham proclaimed what he knew to be true.  All the families of the earth would be blessed through Abraham.  Therefore, Abraham proclaimed the Lord’s promises so that all the families of the earth could know them, assent to them, and trust in them for their eternal good.

     This is also why you and I gather in God’s house.  We hear the promises and ponder them so that our faith is informed, corrected, fed, and strengthened.  Those who do not hear God’s word will probably not forget the stories or the promises, but eventually, they no longer assent or trust in them.  “Faith comes through hearing the message, and the message is word through the word of Christ” (Romans 10:17).  Faith comes, that is, it continues to be sustained as God’s word is heard. That’s why we keep on listening.

     Once that word is heard, known to be true, and trusted, it is to be proclaimed.  God’s salvation is meant for all.  Just as Abraham proclaimed it, so do we.  No one can know God’s promises, assent to them, trust in them, and benefit from them unless those who have the promises proclaim them.  This is how saving faith came to you.  It is how it comes to others.  The Lord works faith in us; then he rewards us for the faith he gives and sustains in us.  We know it.  We assent to it.  We trust in it.  And we are saved by it.

In the name of the Father and of the Son + and of the Holy Spirit.  Amen. 

YouTube -- 2nd Sunday of Lent (March 1, 2026)

Here is the Divine Service from Sunday, March 1, 2026.  Rev. Gregory Gibbons was the preacher.

Sermon -- 1st Sunday in Lent (February 22, 2026)

THE SECOND ADAM RESCUES THE SONS OF ADAM.

GENESIS 3:1-15

In the name + of Jesus.

     When God finished creating the world, “God saw everything that he had made, and indeed, it was very good” (Genesis 1:31).  The man and the woman were very good, made in the image of God.  They were in perfect harmony with God’s will.  They knew what God’s will was, they wanted to do God’s will, and they could do God’s will.  To serve and obey God was their joy and their purpose.

     The Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil was also very good.  Some think the tree was bad, as if God had put it there to entrap Adam and Eve.  But the tree was very good.  It presented Adam and Eve with daily opportunities to serve and honor God by obeying the one commandment God had given them: Do not eat from this tree.

     You and I have been given Ten Commandments to keep.  They are very good.  They present unlimited opportunities for us to willingly and gladly honor and obey God.  Even when you are tempted to sin against them, God summons you to call upon him for strength so that you continue in godliness.  This honors God, and it is good.

     When the first perfect man and woman were in the world, Satan came on the attack.  He sought to lead the first Adam into sin, resulting in endless shame and eternal death.  Of course, the devil was sly.  He spoke to Eve, but Adam was right there.  Satan first challenged God’s word.  “Has God really said…” (Genesis 3:1)?  Satan always wants us to question God’s word.  Perhaps you misunderstood.  Perhaps those words are outdated.  Perhaps they aren’t even God’s words.  Then Satan challenged God’s love.  He claimed, “You certainly will not die.  In fact, God knows that the day you eat from it, your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil” (Genesis 3:4-5). 

     If eating this fruit would make them so much wiser, better, and even God-like, why would God forbid it?  You can almost imagine Satan saying, “God wants you to be happy, doesn’t he?  The benefit of eating this fruit will make you happy, won’t it?  Why doesn’t God want you to be happy?”  And that’s all it took.  Eve ate the fruit.  Adam, who had been with her, did nothing to stop it.  He did not preach God’s word.  He did not protect his wife.  He abandoned his role as head and ate the fruit with her.  And Satan claimed the whole world for himself.  The first holy man was holy no more.  The image of God was shattered by sin.  “Sin entered the world through one man and death through sin, so also death spread to all people because all sinned” (Romans 5:12).

     You and I are all sons and daughters of Adam.  We have inherited his image.  We are sinners, and we are no better or smarter.  Satan still sells us the same arguments.  “Has God really said…” he questions.  “Maybe those words were for a different era.  21^st century Americas are more sophisticated than that, aren’t they?”  Then, of course, the argument that always works: “God just wants you to be happy.”  Well, that’s wonderful!  Because I want to be happy!  But that also suggests that what makes me happy is good.

     Adam ate the fruit because he wanted to be happy.  David had an adulterous affair with Bathsheba because that made him happy.  King Ahab had Naboth killed because taking Naboth’s vineyard made him happy.  Caiaphas orchestrated the crucifixion of Jesus because that made him happy.  And why are you drawn to the sins you commit?  Because you believe they will make you happy.  If the goal in life is just to be happy, doesn’t that justify anything that will make you happy?  And if the goal is “just to be happy,” prepare for a miserable life.  There will never be enough prosperity, enough pampering, enough pleasure.  And what if you are standing in the way of someone else’s happiness?  You took their parking spot.  You grabbed the last piece of pizza.  You hogged the covers.  Would you forfeit your happiness to make someone else happy?  If we are honest enough to acknowledge our own self-worship, we would confess, “Only my happiness matters.”  Repent.

     What’s worse is that once the devil has convinced you to seize what God forbids to make yourself happy, the devil turns around and makes you miserable.  He mocks you.  He accuses and convicts you for the very thing he coaxed you into doing.  The serpent is crafty and cruel.  He is no friend.  He struck like a viper.  The venom courses through us, and we cannot recover.  Eventually, it will kill us.  We are sinners, and we cannot fix it.  We are terrified to look God in the face, and for good reason.  Like the first Adam, the sons and daughters of Adam stand before God completely exposed in our wretched state. 

     The first Adam did not have to wade slowly into his sinful state to get used to it.  He plunged all the way into the deep end.  Adam and Eve tried to evade accountability.  They made excuses.  They did not confess their sin nor ask for mercy.  Nevertheless, God had mercy upon them.  The first Adam needed to be rescued from the curse of sin.  The sons of Adam need to be rescued from sin.  So, God promised one who would rescue them.  The second Adam would rescue the sons of Adam.

     The promise was made as God addressed the devil, still in the form of a serpent.  He said, “I will put hostility between you and the woman, and between your seed and her seed.  He will crush your head, and you will crush his heel” (Genesis 3:15).  We are not told when he would come or where he would come from.  We are not even told his name.  But we are told what he would do: He would crush the head of the serpent.  He would render the serpent powerless.  He would remedy the chaos, the cruelty, and the curse that results from sin.  The second Adam would rescue all the sons and daughters of Adam.

     As you know, the second Adam has come.  “We believe in one Lord, Jesus Christ, the only Son of God … who for us men…, he became man” (Nicene Creed).  This man was conceived by the Holy Spirit, so he did not inherit the image of Adam as we have.  He entered the world without sin.  At age 30, Jesus was baptized, anointed by the Holy Spirit, and was publicly revealed as the Christ.  God the Father declared, “This is my Son, whom I love.  I am well pleased with him” (Matthew 3:17).  The Father was declared him to be very good.

     The second Adam was sent to rescue the sons of Adam.  Not since the Garden of Eden had another holy man walked the face of the earth.  And just as the devil had overcome the first Adam and led him into sin, so the devil hoped to overcome the second Adam.  This attack did not take place in a lush garden with food in abundance and variety; it took place in the wilderness, devoid of fruits, vegetables, and foliage.

     As he had with the first Adam, so the devil began his temptation on the second Adam.  He challenged God’s word.  The Lord had just declared at Jesus’ baptism, “You are my Son” (Matthew 3:17).  The devil began his temptations, “If you are the Son of God…” (Matthew 4:3,6).  He not only challenged Jesus’ identity, he challenged him to prove it.  “If you are the Son of God, command these stones to become bread” (Matthew 4:3).  You can imagine the devil continuing the seduction.  “Jesus, you haven’t eaten for forty days.  If you are the Son of God, you have the power to turn this stone to bread.  You can satisfy your hunger right now.  Doesn’t your Father want you to be happy and healthy?  Wouldn’t a loaf of bread do that?  It would be easy enough, right?  If you are the Son of God…”

     But God’s call for us is not to be happy.  It is to be faithful.  It is to be holy.  Of course, God wants that to make us happy.  But sometimes being faithful means that we do what is right even if it doesn’t make us happy.  Sometimes being faithful is hard.  Sometimes it is costly.  Sometimes it is painful.  But it is always good and right.

     Jesus did not buy the argument that his purpose was to make himself happy.  His purpose was to rescue the sons and daughters of Adam.  Therefore, he did not abuse his divine power, and he did not seek shortcuts to our salvation.  Jesus made himself a sin offering, being slain for sins he did not commit.  He suffered a punishment he did not deserve.  Going to the cross, being roasted in the fires of God’s wrath, enduring the punishment of hell on behalf of all sinners is not something Jesus did to make himself happy.  Leading up to that torment, Jesus told his disciples, “My soul is very sorrowful, even to the point of death” (Matthew 26:38).  Nevertheless, Jesus went because that is what the Father had given him to do.  The second Adam came to rescue the sons of Adam.

     The second Adam was faithful to his Father, even though faithfulness was hard and costly, and painful.  Jesus let the serpent strike his heel.  He took into himself all the venom of sin and subjected himself to the curse and the death that comes with it.  The crucifixion was not about Jesus’ happiness.  Being faithful to his Father is where Jesus found his joy.  The Bible says, “In view of the joy set before him, he endured the cross, disregarding its shame” (Hebrews 12:2).  Jesus would not let the shame or the pain of his death deter him from his faithfulness.  Jesus found his joy in rescuing you from your guilt and from the fiery judgment it deserves. 

     By his death and resurrection, Jesus has crushed the serpent’s head.  He has destroyed the work of the devil.  He has rescued you from the devil’s claims.  Now, it is God who claims you as his very own.  St. Paul wrote, “You are all sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus.  Indeed, as many of you as were baptized into Christ have been clothed with Christ” (Galatians 3:26-27).  You don’t need to craft anything flimsy to hide your sin as the first Adam did.  You have been clothed with the holiness of the second Adam.  His righteousness covers you.

     And the Son of God has now made you sons of God.  As sons of God, you are now heirs with the Son of God to the kingdom of glory.  As sons of God, you will follow the Son of God through death into the resurrection to life everlasting.  For God tells us: “The first man is of the earth, made of dust.  The second man is the Lord from heaven.  As was the man made of dust, so are the people who are made of dust, and as is the heavenly man, so the heavenly people will be.  And just as we have borne the image of the man made of dust, let us also bear the image of the heavenly man” (1 Corinthians 15:47-49). 

     The second Adam rescues the son of Adam.  He restores in you the image of God.  He brings life.  He reverses the curse.  He delivers you from the chaos of a corrupt world to a new creation of peace and glory.  He will bring you to eternal pleasures and unending happiness in God’s presence.  And it will be very good.

In the name of the Father and of the Son + and of the Holy Spirit.  Amen.

YouTube -- Palm Sunday (April 13, 2025)

Here is the Divine Service from Sunday, April 13, 2025.

Sermon -- 6th Sunday in Lent / Palm Sunday (April 13, 2025)

PHILIPPIANS 2:5-11

THE OBEDIENT SERVANT COMES TO DIE.

In the name + of Jesus.

     The prophet Isaiah foretold the coming Messiah more vividly than any other prophet.  He recorded five servant songs.  The first one was in our Old Testament lesson, beginning, “Here is my servant, whom I uphold, my chosen one in whom I delight” (Isaiah 42:1).  While many Jews in Jesus’ day were looking for a Messiah-King, Isaiah alerts us that we should be looking first for a servant.

     The crowds who celebrated Jesus’ entrance into Jerusalem on Palm Sunday had their focus on a king, on a problem-solver, and on glory.  They were not entirely wrong, but they were not right, either.  St. Luke tells us, “As he was approaching the slope of the Mount of Olives, the whole crowd of disciples began to praise God joyfully, with a loud voice, for all the miracles they had seen” (Luke 19:37).  I suppose you can’t blame the crowds for such praise.  Just ask the people whose sight was restored, whose limbs were made strong enough to walk, whose cleansing of leprosy allowed them to return to their families and communities, or whose bodies were freed from demon possession.  Or ask the families who got to see their loved ones restored to health.  How could they not praise Jesus for the miracles they had seen? 

     The praises continued with the crowds saying, “Blessed is the King who comes in the name of the Lord!  Peace in heaven and glory in the highest” (Luke 19:38)!  It was foretold that the Messiah would establish a kingdom that would enjoy unending glory and uninterrupted peace.  Who does not pray for such things to this day?  No matter who is protesting about what, all people want peace and glory even if they have different ideas about what that means.  The Messiah-King is supposed to usher in a kingdom of peace and glory that is eternal.  The crowds were not entirely wrong to expect that, but they were not right, either.  Although Jesus came to establish a kingdom, he comes first and foremost as a servant.

     St. Paul reflected on this when he wrote: “Though he was by nature God, he did not consider equality with God as a prize to be displayed, but he emptied himself by taking the nature of a servant” (Philippians 2:6-7).  Even though God the Son is King of the Universe, full of glory, power, and majesty, he emptied himself of those things.  That does not mean he lost them or was stripped of them.  God the Son never stopped being God the Son.  Rather, he emptied himself by taking on the nature of a servant.  That means that Jesus did not make regular use of his glory, power, and majesty.  We do get a glimpse of that in his miracles.  But even when Jesus made use of his glory and power, it was not to dazzle or amaze.  He is not an entertainer, but a servant.  He used his miraculous powers to serve people in need—the sick, the demon-possessed, the dying, and even for those who had already died.  Jesus is an obedient servant.

     Now, if Jesus is a servant, that means he has come to do the will of someone else.  A servant follows the orders of his master.  So, Jesus came in obedience to his heavenly Father.  That meant more than just keeping the Commandments.  “When he was born in human likeness, and his appearance was like that of any other man, he humbled himself and became obedient to the point of death—even death on a cross” (Philippians 2:7-8).  Jesus came as an obedient servant, and the obedient servant came to die. 

     Other kings have demanded unquestioned obedience from their subjects.  I recall hearing a story about Alexander the Great (and this may be an urban legend) who was preparing to lay siege to a city.  The king of that city was not ready to just roll over and surrender.  But to demonstrate how committed his troops were to him, Alexander had them line up and ordered them to march.  Dutifully, the soldiers marched single-file, right off of a cliff.  There was no hesitation or resistance.  They followed Alexander’s orders until he gave the order to halt.  Once the king saw that Alexander’s soldiers would obey his orders even in facing certain death, he recognized that he could not resist Alexander’s army.  He surrendered immediately.

     The death of Jesus, however, is not just a show of allegiance.  Yes, Jesus went to the cross as his Father commanded.  He went without hesitation or resistance.  He proved himself an obedient servant.  Jesus served in obedience to his Father, but he served for the benefit of you.  Jesus did exactly what he was sent for, anointed for, and ordered to do: “The Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many” (Mark 10:45).  Jesus willingly gave up his life to be the ransom price that delivers you from your sins, from death, and from the devil.  The obedient servant had come to die for you.

     You and I have not been the willing and obedient servants that God wants.  We bristle just hearing the word, “servant.”  Americans have been trained: We are not servants of anybody.  From cries of “Don’t tread on me” to “My body, my choice,” we have embraced the spirit that refuses to submit to others.  But here is the stark reality: You are a servant no matter what you think.  The question is: What do you serve?  Who is your master?

     St. Paul asks, “Do you not know that when you offer yourselves to obey someone as slaves, you are slaves of the one you are obeying—whether slaves of sin, resulting in death, or slaves of obedience, resulting in righteousness” (Romans 6:16)?  We all want to believe that we are free to do whatever we want.  And in some respects, it is true.  You are free to serve your ego which riles up your anger when others do not honor you with what you believe is proper respect.  You are free to serve your selfish motives which cause you to manipulate others so that you get your way.  You are free to serve your pride which causes you to be jealous of other people’s success because you want that praise for yourself.  But this is not freedom at all.  Do you know why?  Because you cannot turn off your sinful inclinations.  You continue to sin even when you don’t want to.  This means you are enslaved to sin.  You are a captive of the devil because you are doing what the devil desires.  Even if you would be foolish enough to boast that you are free from keeping God’s word, you are not free from his judgment.  Repent.

     The obedient servant has come for you.  He entered Jerusalem on Palm Sunday to present himself as the sin offering for you.  The obedient servant came to die for you.  By taking up your sin, Jesus went to the cross to be forsaken by the Father and to suffer the cursed death.  This is where the Father dealt with the penalty for all your sins.  By sacrificing himself for you, Jesus has set you free from your sin, from its curse, and from its penalty.  Although it meant a death of shame, pain, torment, and damnation, Jesus went to the cross.  He went without hesitation and without resistance because it meant your salvation.  The obedient servant came to die for you.

     “Therefore” (Philippians 2:9).  This is the conclusion that Paul highlights.  Because Jesus willingly obeyed his heavenly Father, because Jesus died a sacrificial death to set sinners free from their sin, “therefore God also highly exalted him and gave him the name that is above every name, so that at the name of Jesus every knee will bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father” (Philippians 2:9-11).  The obedient servant was raised from the dead and lives.  More than being raised from the dead to live, Jesus is also exalted and reigns over all things.  Jesus, the man from Nazareth, possesses all glory, power, and majesty.  He is the Messiah-King, reigning over heaven and earth and everything that has been created, seen and unseen. 

     Even though Jesus possesses all authority, he is still a servant because he lives to serve you.  He lives to proclaim a full pardon from all your sins.  He lives to assure you that you will be delivered from death.  He lives to silence every accusation of the devil.  He lives to guide you, direct you, and protect you so that you will not be swept away by your sins again.  Jesus releases you from captivity of the devil and from slavery to sin.

     The obedient servant has made you obedient servants.  When you were baptized into the name of Jesus, you were united to Jesus in his death.  The sinful nature was put to death in you so that it no longer controls you.  God raised you up a new creation; sin is no longer your master.  Now you have a new master.  You are servants of righteousness.  That means you want to flee from all wickedness and to do what is good, right, and salutary.  Yes, you will struggle with sin as long as you are in this flesh.  But the Holy Spirit has worked in you a pure heart and a right spirit so that you are grieved by your sins.  You want to follow God’s word because you love your Savior and delight in his word.  The obedient servant has made you obedient servants.

     You recognize that God has a higher purpose for you than worshiping yourself, using people, or cursing strangers on the internet.  That is not how our Lord treats you.  He came as an obedient servant who died to save you, and you love him for it.  You recognize that his service and his attitude are noble, righteous, and beneficial.  Therefore, you concur with the words of St. Paul, “Indeed, let this attitude be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus” (Philippians 2:5).  The obedient servant makes you obedient servants.  God the Son died for you so that you could live as obedient children of God now and forever, without hesitation or resistance.

     It is no wonder the crowds celebrated Jesus when he entered into Jerusalem on Palm Sunday.  They yearned for a king, for a problem-solver, and for glory.  They were not entirely right, but they were not entirely wrong, either.  For, Jesus has established an enduring kingdom.  He lives and reigns.  All people whether in heaven, in hell, or on earth will have to confess him Lord.  We rejoice to do that because our Lord was pleased to serve and to save us.  Every knee will bow before him.  We are honored to bend our knees before King Jesus, because we know that he will exalt us. 

     Our Messiah-King will come again.  Our hopes will be fulfilled.  Our praises will be vindicated.  Our glory will be unending.  Our peace will go on uninterrupted.  For the obedient servant is now the everlasting King.  Blessed is the King.  Peace on earth and glory in the highest!

In the name of the Father and of the Son + and of the Holy Spirit.  Amen. 

Sermon -- 4th Sunday in Lent (March 30, 2025)

This sermon was intended to be preached for the 4th Sunday in Lent.  An infection had me fever-stricken and reduced to bed rest instead of being at church to preach it.  This is a draft which would have been edited were it not for the infection, so it could stand some improvement.  Then again, I would say that about every sermon manuscript I prepare.  I would edit until Judgment Day if I did not have a deadline to preach it.

LUKE 15:1-3,11b-32

THE FATHER LAVISHES LOVE ON THE LOST.

In the name + of Jesus.

     The parable of the Prodigal Son is endearing to us because we all enjoy a happy ending.  We think that it is wonderful that a father would welcome home his wayward son and receive him with a warm embrace.  It warms our hearts to hear that the past has been forgotten and that all the blessings and benefits of sonship have been restored.  It is a wonderful story, but it is a story that we do not fully appreciate because it is mostly theory for us.  It is also because we tend to see ourselves in the wrong brother.

     Let’s rework this parable for just a moment.  Say you had a brother who complained about your family.  He hated the rules of the house and boasted all the time how he would do things better.  He does not want to be like your parents because they are too rigid, too controlling, and too boring.  There’s life to live, and they don’t get it.  So, he asks your father to cash in whatever money was saved up for his college education.  Stocks were sold and an IRA was cashed in with early withdrawal penalties and all.  Then he takes the family car and off he goes to live it up. 

     After another day on your father’s farm, sweating out in the field, you come home to see your brother’s posts on Instagram.  He is holding up his beer with bikini-clad women surrounding him.  Hashtag: ThisIsTheGoodLife.  It does not take long before he blows his money on booze and gambling.  He also totaled the car.  You aren’t surprised.  Your little brother never took life seriously, and it finally came back to bite him.  He found himself homeless and penniless.  Eventually, he decided to hitchhike back home.

     After another long day of labor, you head home and are greeted by the smell of barbeque and the sound of a DJ.  Then you learn that this is for your little brother.  Not only was he welcomed back home, but he was being celebrated.  There was no lecture, no punishment, nothing.  He was even given a new car to replace the one he totaled.  Would you join in the party?  Could you look at your brother without any feelings of resentment?  Would you give him a hug?  And what would you think of your father who, apparently, had no problems with your little brother’s debauchery and defiance?

     I think you can understand the older brother’s outrage—outrage toward the brother who dishonored his father and flaunted it; outrage toward the father who not only received little brother back but even celebrated his return.  Where is the justice?  Why does the greedy, perverted drunkard have the father’s favor when you have been diligently bearing the cross and laboring with no fanfare whatsoever? 

     The older brother has a point, doesn’t he?  Who could disagree with him?  Those who live obediently, morally, and decently should be rewarded and honored, right?  Those who are brazen sinners should be told that they made their choices and should suffer the consequences for them.  Would anyone take the employee that embezzles from the company and make him the vice president of operations?  And if it did happen, would you be happy for that man? 

     Jesus’ parables prove that we are not like the heavenly Father.  The Father lavishes his love on the lost.  The father certainly could have crushed his son in harsh judgment, and we would not have blamed him.  Even his own son would not have blamed him.  He discovered that a life of sex, drugs, and rock ‘n’ roll did not satisfy him.  “But,” you protest, “what if is money had not run out?  Wouldn’t he have found happiness in the life he had chosen for himself?”  The answer?  Even if he had continued to live in hedonism, gluttony, and drunkenness, what would he have gained from it?  What was his purpose in life—just to get his next drink?  Who did he have that loved him?  As long as he was buying, he probably had lots of friends.  So, why didn’t anyone take him in when he ran out of money?  What woman stuck by his side when times got tough?  The young man had squandered all his blessings.  He knew it, and confessed it to be so: “I will get up, go to my father, and tell him, ‘Father, I have sinned against heaven and in your sight.  I am no longer worthy to be called your son.  Make me like one of your hired servants”’ (Luke 15:18-19).  The younger son finally recognized that in his father’s house he had provision, protection, life, hope, and a noble purpose.  Separated from his father’s house, he was dying, hopeless, and helpless.

     The younger son had abandoned the father’s house and all its blessings.  We would expect him to get what he deserves.  But we are not like the heavenly Father.  “His father saw him and was filled with compassion.  He ran, hugged his son, and kissed him….  The father said to his servants, ‘Quick, bring out the best robe and put it on him.  Put a ring on his finger and sandals on his feet.  Bring the fattened calf and kill it.  Let us eat and celebrate, because this son of mine was dead and is alive again.  He was lost and is found.’ Then they began to celebrate” (Luke 15:20-24).  The Father lavishes love on the lost.

     We are not like the heavenly Father.  We think in terms of fairness and consequences.  Good people go to heaven; that’s fair.  Bad people go to hell; those are the consequences.  It makes sense, doesn’t it?  Not to the Father.  He lavishes love on the lost. 

     Well, it sure did not make sense to the older brother.  When he heard how graciously the father had taken back his younger brother, he was upset.  When he learned that the father did not hold little brother responsible for his actions, he was incensed.  The older brother had been the good son.  He protested to his father, “Look, these many years I’ve been serving you, and I never disobeyed your command” (Luke 15:29).  He was convinced that he had earned better treatment.  Once again, that seems fair, doesn’t it?

     Dear Christian friends, repent!  You may credit yourself with obedience to the Father because you have not been guilty of the brazen sins of others.  You are no criminals.  And you may take pride in the way you have served your Father in heaven.  You have done good works, and others have benefited from them.  But you and I fail to understand this: We are not the natural-born children of God.  Our place in his family has not been earned, and it is not deserved.  As St. Paul reminds us, “We carried out the desires of the sinful flesh and its thoughts.  Like all the others, we were by nature objects of God’s wrath” (Ephesians 2:3).  

     The older brother forgot his place in the father’s house.  He was not there because he had worked his way into it.  He did nothing to belong to the father’s house, except be born into it, which is an act of grace.  We often think of people who have been born into families of affluence.  They are often vilified as people who have won life’s lottery, as if they filled out the right forms or paid off the right people to be born into that family.  The rich kid is in the rich family because of God’s doing.  While the rich kid benefits from his father’s wealth, he really owns nothing.  It is all the father’s possession, and he shares it with his children.

     This is the case with the older brother.  The father even told him so.  Trying to appease him, “The father said to him, ‘Son, you are always with me, and all that I have is yours’” (Luke 15:31).  Whatever the son had was his by grace.  All the goods and the blessings belonged to the father who graciously bestowed them on his son.  And he was not stingy.  All that the father had belonged to the son as well.  The father’s lavish love was given to him, too.

     The Father lavishes his love on the lost.  This grace is even more evident when it comes to the family of God.  For, no one is automatically in God’s family.  We are by nature sinful, objects of wrath, and outside of God’s kingdom.  All are lost.  And yet, God has been pleased to bring us into his family.  He gives us new birth to a new life.  This was done for us through Jesus Christ.

     Jesus is the son who left the mansions of heaven to go to this world where he associated with prostitutes, tax collectors, and sinners.  He squandered all he had on these sinners, including you and me.  Jesus poured out his life, his breath, his body, and his blood for the sake of sinners.  The payment he made for your sins and mine and for the sins of the whole world is the life of the Son of God.  It is this reckless love that sent Jesus to the cross where he was forsaken by his Father because of our sins.  Cut off from his Father, there was only death and damnation for Jesus.  This is the ransom price for you.  This is Jesus’ reckless spending which purchased and won you from all sins, from death, and from the power of the devil.  This is his lavish love for you.

     Then the Son, who squandered all things to redeem you, rose from the dead.  He ascended to heaven where his Father received him back with joy and celebrating.  Jesus of Nazareth was given all majesty, power, and glory.  He has been given all authority to rule over heaven and earth and to forgive sins.  In both cases, he lavishes his love on the lost.  And he continues to squander his grace upon all people.  When he covered your debts and paid for all your past sins, he did not say, “Okay, your debt has been covered.  But now we are done.  Rather, he continues to apply the ransom price for the sins you still commit.  He has even spent himself on the sins of people who prefer a life apart from the Father’s house.  Since they continue in stubborn unbelief, they receive no benefit from Jesus’ payment, but the payment was made for them.  And he does not regard this grace as a waste.  This lavish love is for all the lost.

     The Father lavishes his love on the lost.  He sent his Son to ensure that you would not be left outside of the Father’s house.  Outside of the Father’s house is only death, hopelessness, and helplessness.  Inside the Father’s house is all that you need for body and life, for time and eternity.  Jesus has poured out his life, his breath, his body, and his blood to win it for you.  And now he bestows on you new life.  He breathes his Holy Spirit into you.  He gives you his body and blood for your forgiveness.  All this so that you would be his.

     The apostle John promises us, “To all who did receive him, to those who believe in his name, he gave the right to become children of God” (John 1:12).  And if you are God’s children, then all that is the Father’s is yours.  His love is yours.  His mercy is yours.  His kingdom is yours.  And thanks to Jesus’ reckless spending and lavish love, you are his forever.

In the name of the Father and of the Son + and of the Holy Spirit.  Amen.